Page 26 of Puck King
Nodding, my shaky legs started to regain their strength. But Colton was still holding my entire body weight with one arm. “I’ve never fainted before.” My voice cracked.
“It tends to happen when you stop breathing. You can’t let those leeches get to you.”
My footsteps felt stronger beneath me and I brushed his arm aside. “I’ve got it.”
“Are you sure?” He ignored my attempt to free myself from his support.
“Yeah.” As if to show him, I took a couple of steps ahead. “See? My own two feet.” I wavered, but hoped it was subtle enough that he didn’t see.
We fell back into step together. “What’s next on the worst to-do list of all time?”
I chuckled. The snow hadn’t been cleared on the sidewalk, and the sound of it crunching beneath our steps filled the space in between our thoughts. We walked a few silent steps before I added, “There are worse things than this list, like mucking out the barn.”
Two crunchy steps later I heard Colton laugh. “No offense, Alison – you’re actually pretty cool, but I’d much rather muck out a horse stall than go on a pretend date with anyone.”
I stopped. “Me too. Although that’s not really a fair statement. I actually like mucking stalls.”
“Me too.” Colton laughed and turned to face me. “Hey, Alison. Let’s make the best of this.” He squeezed my arm.
“Okay.” I smiled and felt the warmth from his hand through my down coat. Even though the temperature was well below freezing, his sentiment warmed my chest. “Our next date is dinner. Friday night.”
“Colton!” We heard the shout from the end of the street. The paparazzi were advancing.
“Oh, no.” I could feel the tears welling up in my eyes. “This. This is worse than dinner with you.”
“Come on.” Colton grabbed my hand and tugged me down a side street. The commotion followed as we broke into a light jog. “Here.” He pointed to an alley. I giggled as we slipped between two brownstones and pressed against the wall behind a pillar. Just a few seconds later, the photographers shuffled past the alley.
“Breathe.” Colton elbowed me and hissed out the side of his mouth.
Thankful for the reminder, I inhaled the chilly air and pressed my body into the cold wall, turning my head so that we were facing each other. “What was the other thing?”
“What?” His body was warm next to mine, and steam puffed out of our mouths as we hid in the shadows.
“You’re afraid to get back on your horse, but what’s the other thing that you’re afraid of?”
He laughed, and a huge puff of steam lingered in the air between us. “Getting back on my horse is one thing. The other…” he said with a laugh, “is my sister.”
“The horse thing, I can help you with. But Everleigh…” I laughed. “She’s terrifying.”
He leaned away from the wall. “Then we better get this right.” He tapped my arm and jerked his head to the end of the alley. “I think we can get out that way.” He gestured for me to follow him. When we reached the end of the alleyway, we peered around the corner like two kids playing hide and seek. It felt ridiculous, but it was the most fun I’d had in a very long time.
“Is the coast clear, Lacey?” I asked.
“Lacey?” His brow furrowed, then he looked away and strode ahead down the street.
It took me a couple of steps to catch up to him. I chuckled. “You know, likeCagney and Lacey, the detective show.”
“I think I’m too young for that.”
I caught the wry smile. Was this going to be our thing? Antagonizing each other for fun? “I’m too young for it too, mister. My mom used to watch the show.”
Colton tapped his lips as he walked, as if to illustrate that he was thinking. “I would’ve gone withTurner and Hooch.”
“First of all, you’re too young for that movie. Secondly, who is Hooch in this scenario?” I also remembered my parents watching that movie, and in the detective duo, Hooch was a giant, drooling dog.
Colton pulled me close to him, so he could whisper in my ear. But instead of whispering, he sniffed me.
I tucked my chin into my chest but he did it again – this time, close enough that the scruff on his cheek tickled mine. I giggled as I tried to step away from him, but his sniffing became frantic, like a dog on the scent, and the sensation became too much. I squealed and tried to pull away, but the more that I laughed, the more he sniffed, until he suddenly stopped. “I’m Hooch, of course. And, you use Aveda shampoo.”
